Posted on: August 16th, 2019 by Apex Team

Descaling Chemical for Boiler Cleaning

Scale accumulation along the waterside of boilers and boiler tubes will rob the equipment’s heat transfer efficiency. This scale accumulation can be made of rust, calcium, limescale and many other mineral deposits. These unwanted insulators accrue from several factors, including but not limited to: Operating hours, feed water hardness, operating temperature and boiler treatment and maintenance.

It is crucial that a preventative maintenance program be put in place utilizing RYDLYME chemical descaler and a convenient and portable RYDLYME Descaling System.

RYDLYME chemical descaler is the safe, fast and effective tool for dissolving these deposits. An annual, or more frequently dependent on above factors, RYDLYME chemical descaler cleaning will dissolve the calcium, limescale, rust, and other mineral deposits into solution without harming the metallurgy or components within your boiler. RYDLYME chemical descaler is non-hazardous for the personnel who perform the cleaning and disposal is simple upon completion of the cleaning; as RYDLYME chemical descaler is readily biodegradable.

For instance, scale that is only 3/16’’ thick will cause the boiler to use 27% more fuel! More importantly – leaving this scale build up in the tubes of the boiler can greatly reduce the lifespan of the equipment. Scale is naturally corrosive to the tube material, slowly but surely eating through at the tube walls! Maintaining your boiler with RYDLYME chemical descaler minimizes scale accumulation, corrosion, and will ultimately increase the equipment’s lifespan and efficiency.

Boiler Tube Cleaning Methods

Just like in any industry, there is the hard way and the smart way of getting the job done. Traditional mechanical methods of tube cleaning such as rodding and hydroblasting, are expensive, time consuming and require extended downtime. Alternative chemical methods are hazardous, corrosive and require additional PPE and disposal considerations. In some cases, it’s difficult to access the tubes to hydroblast or rod! This can also lead to inadequate cleaning and residual scale left in the boiler.

So, now that we’ve talked about the hard way to clean, let’s talk about the smart way to clean. Using The World’s Leading Biodegradable Descaler RYDLYME to remove unwanted scale is easy, safe and quick! The Leading Biodegradable Descaler, RYDLYME, is non-corrosive, non-hazardous and can be disposed of easily! Descaling heat exchangers is made even easier with the use of one of our descaling systems!

Boiler Tube RYDLYME Descaling Procedure

Apex Engineering Products has been manufacturing safe chemical solutions for more than 75, so we are familiar with all shapes, sizes and boiler configurations. The procedure outline below is brief and simple for most boiler cleanings.

  1. Shut down boiler.
  2. Blow down with pressure still on.
  3. Drain and flush unit.
  4. Close steam valve.
  5. Add RYDLYME, and then top off with water.
  6. Circulate through the drain or low point and return from the pressure relief valve or high point of the boiler back to a vented container.
  7. Circulate for 4-8 hours depending on volume.
  8. Open steam valve.
  9. Drain, flush, re-fill and start up.

For detailed instructions please visit our website or contact our technical staff for assistance.

Amount of RYDLYME Chemical Descaler Required

A basic rule of thumb for most boilers on a preventative maintenance program would be to utilize a 25% RYDLYME descaling solution of the total water volume.

Obviously, heavily fouled boilers or those maintained in less than ideal condition would require additional product. Our strong recommendation is to contact our headquarters at 630-820-8888 for technical assistance to help determine the appropriate circulating times and proper quantities of RYDLYME chemical descaler.